NORTH FORK TIMES
SURFACE CREEK NEWS
SPORTS
MINING SETBACK
LEAVE YOUR MARK
AT THE TOP OF WSL
Unsafe CO levels send Elk Creek coal miners home, B1
Deadline extended for Orchard City’s memorial wall, C1
Delta boys’, girls’ basketball teams extend their winning streaks, C3-4
DELTA COUNTY
JANUARY 16, 2013 VOL. 130, NO. 3
75¢
INDEPENDENT
www.deltacountyindependent.com
Technology is changing education BY PAT SUNDERLAND Managing Editor
Technology has caused a dramatic shift in thinking at Delta County schools. Where computers were once centrally located in the district’s highly acclaimed tech labs, they’re now in the hands of the students who come to school with iPads, iPhones, laptop computers, tablets and other devices in hand. “We have gone from don’t use your cell phone in the classroom five years ago to ‘Please bring anything you have and all you have,’ ” said assistant superintendent Kurt Clay. “It’s been a huge shift.” While students are discouraged from texting or making phone calls during classtime, they are using their phones and other devices for research, to complete quizzes, to access free apps and even to view “wikis” produced by their teachers. Tech-savvy teachers use wikis and apps to illustrate their lessons or demonstrate a concept. From their computers at home, kids can access homework assignments or watch how an algebra problem is solved, for example. There’s no excuse for missing a lesson because of illness or a basketball trip. “The tech labs will never go away, but what we do in the labs has changed,” Clay said. It’s all part of a shift to integrate technology into every subject. The content teacher is now also the tech teacher. “The idea is to get technology into the hands of the kids,” said Glen Suppes, assistant principal at Hotchkiss High
School. “We’re taking the tech lab and bringing it to the classroom.” Principal Mike Beard has made it a priority to bring an interactive, multimedia educational experience to every student at HHS. With a prudent use of financial resources, along with support from the Cocker Kids Foundation and the Bulldog Booster Club, the school has been able to purchase 115 iPads for use in the classrooms. Every teacher has his or her own iPad. That means teachers like Blake Carlquist can put together a lesson, then project that lesson on a screen through the use of Apple TV. Students can either look at the screen or watch the lesson on school iPads distributed from a storage cart. Carlquist no longer stands at the front of the classroom and lectures; instead he enriches history with colorful graphics, maps and videos, some of which he’s produced himself. He also takes advantage of the incredible variety of apps available for teachers, many of which are free. “Technology is a powerful tool, and it’s making a difference with kids,” Beard said. “They are engaged,” Suppes added. From their desks, students can work out the solution to a problem on their iPads, then “mirror” the process for everyone in the classroom with the touch of a finger. They access quizzes, type in the answers and hit send. The results are compiled on a spreadsheet that Carlquist can access on TECHNOLOGY TO A3
Photo by Pat Sunderland
Blake Carlquist, a history teacher at Hotchkiss High School, developed a unit on feudalism with the tools on his iPad. He uses an interactive screen to share the unit with his students. They, in turn, can use either their own devices or the school’s to participate in the unit, take quizzes, write papers and conduct research. It’s all part of an effort to take the tech lab experience and put it in every classroom at HHS.
Frac facts presented BY HANK LOHMEYER Staff Writer
Representatives from industry and government presented rafts of information on hydraulic fracturing for more than 100 people who attended a forum on the topic in Delta last Saturday. The event was organized by
Grand Mesa Nordic Council: Drive slower, park wiser BY PAT SUNDERLAND Managing Editor
Over a dozen guests attended the board meeting of Grand Mesa Nordic Council last Tuesday night, anxious to hear what can be done to ensure the safety of winter recreationists following the tragic death of a Grand Junction couple Jan. 5. Glen Eyre, 65, and his wife Linda, 63, were struck in the parking pull-out at the County Line ski area on Grand Mesa. The pull-out is located adjacent to Highway 65, where the speed limit is posted at 55 mph. A 21-year-old driver from Cedaredge swerved to miss an oncoming vehicle, lost traction and struck the Eyres. They died at the scene. Members of the Grand Mesa Nordic Council, a not-for-profit organization that grooms trails on Grand Mesa, have long advocated for improvements to the parking arrangement at County Line. The U.S. Forest Service is working with a number of partners, including the nordic council, to make those improvements and hopes to break ground on
the project this summer. Plans call for the parking area to be enlarged and moved closer to the trailhead on the east side of the highway. “There’s no hope of changing the parking lot at this point, even though that’s been planned,” said board member Tom Ela. “Mainly for this season we need to get some signage up there — some warning signs or reduced speed limit signs. Those are things we’ve asked for previously and will ask for again with more force.” Ela said a meeting has been scheduled with the U.S. Forest Service and Colorado Department of Transportation to reiterate the concerns of the non-profit’s board and members. They also advocate improved plowing. “We’re not in a position to do too much, other than continue to put pressure on the powers that be to rectify the situation,” he said. Board members encourage everyone who shares their concerns to write CDOT and their state representatives. Contact information and a sample let-
INDEX
Gas falls below $3
Accent ........................... A4 Activities ......................A11 Back Page ................... D8 Business ........................ A6 Church ..........................A10 Classifieds .................. D1-2 Editorial ......................... A2 Health & Fitness ........ A8-9 Legals ......................... D3-6 North Fork Times ........B1-6 Obituaries ............. A7, A12 School Zone .................. A5 Service Directory ........ D7 Sports ..........................C3-6 Surface Creek News ...C1-2 TV Listings ..................B3-4
Average retail gasoline prices in Colorado have fallen 6.5 cents per gallon in the past week, averaging $2.83/gallon Monday, Jan. 14. This compares with the national average that has fallen 6 cents per gallon in the last week to $3.26/gallon, according to gasoline price website GasBuddy.com. Prices are 13.8 cents per gallon lower than the same day one year ago and are 33.9 cents per gallon lower than a month ago. Gasoline inventories have rebounded sharply recently, which is a major factor said a GasBuddy analyst.
ter can be found on the organization’s website, gmnc.org. They also posted the following list of actions to improve safety at all the winter-use trailheads on Highway 65: • Be the change you want to see — drive at the speed limit you wish to see enforced near all recreation trailheads on the Grand Mesa. • Morning users: Back into the County Line and Ward Lake parking areas. Use extreme caution when entering and exiting all trailhead parking areas. • If parking is at capacity, explore a different trailhead. If you don’t have a dog, try Skyway. If you do have a dog, try parking at Thunder Mountain Lodge, Ward Campground, Ward Lake, or Mesa Top. All trails at Ward and County Line are dog-friendly. Carpooling is encouraged to reduce the congestion at trailheads; a carpool message board can be found on the Grand Mesa Nordic Council website. “Everybody can help by driving slower, being safer and parking wiser,” Ela said.
a local chapter of the League of Women Voters. It was part of a League initiative to develop a position on hydraulic fracturing at the state level. Presenters were Bruce Bertram, Delta County local government designee for minerals issues; Marc Morton, a local government liaison with the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC); Kent Kuster, an official with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) who deals with oil and gas regulatory issues; and Eric Sanford, operations and land manager for SG Interests of Houston, Texas. Also making presentations at the session were two representatives of the Paoniabased Conservation Center — Sarah Sauter, director, and Lori Molitor, member. Bertram began the presentations with a detailed, illustrated explanation of the safety precautions industry is required to take to prevent interaction or contact of well bore hydrocarbons with the shallow fresh water aquifers. Multiple layers of concrete and steel are required to ensure that hydrocarbon flow from deep strata reach the well head and don’t escape, he explained. New technology called Bradenhead testing provides an additional assurance that any leak occurring in a well casing assembly will be detected, allowing the well to be immediately shut down. Bertram said the process for treating a well, known as hydraulic fracturing, is monitored closely. Wells in Delta County are going to the newer
“closed system” technology that recaptures drilling fluids for transport off site and recycling. The technology eliminates the pit enclosures formerly used for fluid containment. Printed handouts listing and explaining components of drilling and completion fluids used in oil and gas exploration and production were made available. Water and sand comprise 99.51 percent of those fluids, presenters explained. In Delta County, Bertram said, the local regulations require that the local government designee have access to drilling sites at all times. Since 2002, there have been 27 exploration or production gas wells installed here. Bertram has professional experience and extensive knowledge of oil and gas industry operations. He encouraged session attendees to go online and search out the volumes of detailed and authoritative information on oil and gas exploration and hydraulic fracturing. Marc Morton of the COGCC explained to listeners that over 90 percent of oil and gas wells today are hydraulically fractured. The practice has been used in the industry since the 1940s. Morton’s presentation also detailed work of the COGCC in pursuit of its mandate protecting the public interest as it permits, monitors, and regulates drilling activity in the state. New regulations to protect groundwater have recently been adopted (see related story). FracFocus.org provides an FRAC FACTS TO A3
Ordinance allowing explosives takes effect An ordinance permitting the storage of explosives in specific commercial areas of the City of Delta became law at last week’s council meeting upon second and final reading. The vote was 3-2, with Mayor Ed Sisson and councilmember Robert Jurca voting against the measure. Jurca has been opposed to the conditional approval of explosives since it was first proposed on Nov. 20, but Mayor Ed Sisson twice cast votes in favor of moving forward before bowing to his constituents. Councilmember Ray Penick was initially opposed to the idea but said he “came about
face” after a work session where he learned how much oversight is provided by state and federal agencies. “I don’t like the idea of storing explosives in the city but if they meet the state and federal standards, I’m not totally opposed,” Penick said. “Planning and zoning has the ability to review applications and make sure all safety issues are met.” According to the ordinance, the city will consider only “known materials” that have been identified, classified and regulated by a state or federal agency such as the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.